Rezidor Hotels is rolling out superfast internet connections across its hotels and offices in the UK,enabling staff and guests to reach download speeds of 100Mbps.
The hotel group,which owns 34 properties in the UK and includes chains such as Radisson Blu and Park Inn,has signed a three-year contract to use Exponential-e's 100GbE network to provide the connectivity.
The bandwidth will be split in two to provide two separate services.The first will focus on hotels and conference centres,while the second will be used solely for internal employees,providing a more secure and better performing network for the business side of things.It will also give staff access to a number of private cloud services run by Exponential-e.
Chris Webb,regional purchasing manager for the Rezidor Hotel Group,said the company's use of software as a service(SaaS)made a reliable network a necessity.
"Ultimately,[Exponential-e's]ability to provide us with a wholly owned,national 100GigE core network,as well as its understanding of designing a solution which is as important to our brand as the quality of beds,made it the stand-out candidate,"he said.
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"In today's world,where highly complex software-as-a-service applications play a vital role in the day-to-day running of our hotels,having a resilient internet connection to support them is vital to our ongoing success,"added Webb.
Philip Mahoney,area vice-president for Radisson Blu and Missoni in the UK and Ireland,added that a fast connection was now just as important to visitors as having somewhere to sleep.
"We recognise that our guests use more devices and expect faster download speeds and that meetings organisers want the peace of mind of a stable internet service,"he said.
"We see this as just one of the core elements of a full service hotel offering and,just as you'd want a decent bed,a great shower and not to pay extra for them,the same is true with internet access,"added Mahoney.
Radisson Blu and Hotel Missoni locations will be the first to connect,with the rest of the group coming on board over the next few months.
